Official (ice Hockey)
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ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
, an official is a person who has some responsibility for enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. There are two categories of officials, on-ice officials, who are the referees and linesmen that enforce the rules during gameplay, and off-ice officials, who have an administrative role rather than an enforcement role.


On-ice officials

As the name implies, on-ice officials do their job on the
hockey rink An ice hockey rink is an ice rink that is specifically designed for ice hockey, a competitive team sport. Alternatively it is used for other sports such as broomball, ringette, rinkball, and rink bandy. It is a rectangle with rounded corners and ...
. They are traditionally clad in a black
hockey helmet A hockey helmet is worn by players of ice hockey, inline hockey, and bandy to help protect the head from potential injury when hit by the puck, sticks, skates, boards, other players, or the ice. The shell of a hockey helmet is generally ma ...
, black trousers, and a black-and-white vertically striped shirt. They wear standard hockey
skate Skate or Skates may refer to: Fish *Skate (fish), several genera of fish belonging to the family Rajidae * Pygmy skates, several genera of fish belonging to the family Gurgesiellidae * Smooth skates or leg skates, several genera of fish belongin ...
s and carry a finger
whistle A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a larg ...
, which they use to stop play. They communicate with players, coaches, and off-ice officials, both verbally and via hand signals. Starting in 1955 with the introduction of the black-and-white jersey,
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
on-ice officials wore numbers on their back for identification. In 1977, NHL officials removed the number and had only their surnames on the back of their jerseys for identification, normally in a single row across the shoulders. (Some officials with long names would have their name in two rows, the most notable example being
Andy Van Hellemond Andy Van Hellemond (born February 16, 1948) is a Canadian former National Hockey League referee and a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame since 1999. He is also a former municipal politician, serving on city council for the City of Guelph, Ontario f ...
.) However, in 1994, NHL officials returned to wearing solely numbers on their shirts, a procedure adopted by other sports leagues. In the early days of hockey when the NHL was formed (1917), the referees would be clad in a vest and tie along with their pants and carry a bell, not a whistle, to stop the game in progress. In those days, penalties were assessed more on common sense rather than following strict rules, and the official would deem what was allowed and not, as well as the length of the penalties. Later, NHL referees wore cream-colored sweaters over a shirt and tie, from the 1930s to the early 1950s. They then briefly wore orange sweaters with half-zip fronts (and without neckties), until the black-and-white-striped jersey was introduced in 1955.


Referees

A ''referee'' is responsible for the general supervision of the game and can be identified by the orange armbands on his or her arms. Ice hockey is a fast-paced sport with high-velocity shots of a puck that is only a few inches in diameter, therefore referees aim to positions themselves so they have specific unobstructed angles of plays in order to make crucial judgment calls as accurately as possible. Under most officiating systems, the referee is the only official with the authority to assess
penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...
for violations of the rules. When a penalty is being assessed the referee will stand at center ice and announce the penalty to the entire arena. However, the linesmen can report a variety of penalties, such as '' Too many men on the ice'' and major penalties, to the referee, who may then assess the penalty. The referee also conducts the opening
face-off A face-off is the method used to begin and restart play after goals in some sports using sticks, primarily ice hockey, bandy, floorball, broomball, rinkball, and lacrosse. During a face-off, two teams line up in opposition to each other, and t ...
in each period and face-offs that follow after a goal is scored, which are done at the center ice face-off dot. If a goal is challenged, the referee or referees are the ones who review the play.


Linesmen

''Linesmen'' or ''linespersons'' are primarily responsible for watching for violations involving the centre line and the blue line. Such infractions include icing and offside, after which the linesmen conduct
faceoff A face-off is the method used to begin and restart play after goals in some sports using sticks, primarily ice hockey, bandy, floorball, broomball, rinkball, and lacrosse. During a face-off, two teams line up in opposition to each other, and ...
s. They are also expected to break up scuffles, fistfights and other altercations that occur during the game. In some leagues, the rules allow linesmen to call some penalties (such as ''Too many men on the ice''), while others only allow them to report the infraction to the referee.


Assistant referees

In some leagues, the linesmen are given the title of the assistant referee. When given this title, they are given more responsibility to stop play and to call penalties that the referee may not see. The
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
previously used this designation prior to altering its officiating systems in 2006.


On-ice officiating systems

* The ''three-official system'' uses one referee and two linesmen. This is the most commonly used system. The NHL previously used this system until changing to the four-official system in the late 1990s. The highest level for this system is the
ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The E ...
, which does official development for the NHL. * The ''four-official system'' adds a second referee for a total of two referees and two linesmen. In this system, each referee works either the lead/front or the trail/back position. The lead position is normally in the corner of the end zone, while the trail position is in the neutral zone, diagonally opposite the lead referee. As the game transitions from one end of the ice to the other, the lead becomes the trail and vice versa. The four-official system is used in the NHL, AHL, and at other high levels, such as major junior, junior 'A', and top European leagues. In 2007-2008, college hockey used the system in some games on a trial basis. The IIHF first implemented this system for men’s games at the
2008 IIHF World Championship The 2008 IIHF World Championship was played between May 2 and May 18, 2008 in the Canadian cities of Halifax (Nova Scotia) and Quebec City (Quebec). The two venues were the Halifax Metro Centre and the Colisée Pepsi. The tournament was won ...
and for women’s games at the 2014–15 IIHF European Women's Champions Cup; the four-man officiating system has subsequently been the standard in IIHF competition. The NCAA voted in July 2012 to make the four-official system mandatory for men's games starting in the 2013-14 season. * In the ''two-official system'', each official acts as both referee and linesman. Each official has the responsibility to call both penalties and line violations. In this system, neither official wears red or orange armbands or both will wear one armband each. This is used at lower levels of youth hockey and in most adult recreational leagues. * In the ''2-1 system'' (the least common of the on-ice official systems), also called the ''modified three-man'', there are two referees and one linesman. There are a variety of ways to divide the responsibilities between the referees and linesmen. Typically, the back referee is responsible for making the initial call at the blue line when the puck first enters the zone, and after that the linesman takes over. * The ''1-1 system'' (sometimes called ''Texas two-man'') uses one referee and one linesman. This is usually seen in adult recreational leagues (sometimes called "beer league" - C, D and I divisions) as a cost-saving measure; the pace of play at this level is typically slow enough for the two officials to cover events between them. This can also be an informal system used ''ad hoc'' when one of the officials does not show up for a game scheduled to use the three-official system, or when an official is hurt during a game. The referee in this system also has the duties of a linesman. * Beginner-level adult leagues sometimes will only use a single on-ice official who is responsible for calling line violations and penalties. The official will not usually wear orange or red armbands in this system.


Off-ice officials

''Off-ice officials'', with the exception of the video goal judge in professional leagues, do not have any direct impact on the outcome of the game. They serve primarily in administrative and advisory roles.


Goal judge

The ''goal judge'' determines whether a player has scored a goal by watching to see if the puck has crossed the goal line completely. They act only in an advisory role; the referee has the sole authority to award goals and thus can override the opinion of the goal judge. One goal judge is positioned outside the rink directly behind each goal net. For arenas so equipped, the goal judge turns on a red light behind the goal to signal a score. The red goal light and the adjacent green light are connected to the arena game clock. When the clock operator stops the clock, or the time remaining expires, the red light is not able to be activated. In the NHL, the green light is activated only when the game clock reads 00.0 seconds: in lower levels, the green light may be linked to the scoreboard's siren or turn on whenever the time is stopped. In games governed by the IIHF, goal judges wear the same black-and-white striped shirts as on-ice officials. This is not the case for goal judges in North America for games under different hockey codes: their goal judges are usually dressed in apparel bearing a league or hockey association logo, such as sport coats or athletic jackets. In the mid-2000s, the National Hockey League relocated goal judges to higher locations (most commonly the press box, a catwalk or the lower section of the upper deck) with wireless signals. The idea was to allow teams to sell the prime seats, but also to give officials a better view of the action as to be able to reject goals if violations (illegally kicked in, a player in the crease, offside) took place. However, with the expansion of video replay and the addition of a second referee on the ice, the role of the goal judge became relegated to activating the goal lights. The league ceased using goal judges after the 2018–2019 season. The video goal judge now activates the goal lights from the video replay booth. Goal judges were first used around 1877 in Montreal, and were initially called umpires.


Video goal judge

The
video goal judge In ice hockey, an official is a person who has some responsibility for enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. There are two categories of officials, on-ice officials, who are the referees and linesmen that enforce the rules du ...
reviews replays of disputed goals. As the referee does not have access to television monitors, the video goal judge's decision on disputed goals is taken as final. In the
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
, goals may only be reviewed in the following situations: puck crossing the goal line completely and before time expired, puck in the net prior to goal frame being dislodged, puck being directed into the net by hand or foot, the puck deflected into the net off an official, and the puck deflected into the goal by a high stick (stick above the goal) by an attacking player. All NHL goals are subject to review, and although most arenas have a video goal judge, officials from the NHL Hockey Operations Department, located in the Situation Room (also known as the "War Room") at the NHL office in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, will often make the final decision. Arena video goal judges are used in case the communication link with Toronto is not working, and also for other situations such as timing or proper statistic attribution.


Official scorer

The ''official scorer'' keeps the official record of the game. They are responsible for obtaining a list of eligible players from both teams prior to the start of the game. They award
point Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...
s for
goal A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ai ...
s and
assist Assist or ASSIST may refer to: Sports Several sports have a statistic known as an "assist", generally relating to action by a player leading to a score by another player on their team: *Assist (basketball), a pass by a player that facilitates a ba ...
s, and their decision in this regard is final. The official scorer typically sits in an elevated position away from the edge of the rink.


Penalty timekeeper

The ''penalty
timekeeper A timekeeper is an instrument or person that measures the passage of time. Person A timekeeper is a person who measures time with the assistance of a clock or a stopwatch. In addition, a timekeeper records time, time taken, or time remaining duri ...
'' records the penalties imposed by the referee. He is responsible for ensuring that the correct penalty times are posted on the score clock and that players leave the penalty box at the appropriate times.


Game timekeeper

The ''game
timekeeper A timekeeper is an instrument or person that measures the passage of time. Person A timekeeper is a person who measures time with the assistance of a clock or a stopwatch. In addition, a timekeeper records time, time taken, or time remaining duri ...
'' is responsible for stopping and starting the
game clock A chess clock consists of two adjacent clocks with buttons to stop one clock while starting the other, so that the two clocks never run simultaneously. Chess clocks are used in chess and other two-player games where the players move in turn, and ...
.


Statistician

The ''statistician'' records all required data concerning individual and team performances.


See also

*
Director of Officiating (NHL) The Director of Officiating for the National Hockey League (NHL) heads the league's officiating department and reports directly to the senior vice president of the league. The director of officiating is assisted by officiating managers in the NHL's ...
*
List of NHL on-ice officials In ice hockey, an official is responsible for enforcing the rules and maintaining order. On-ice officials are present on the ice during the game, and traditionally wear a shirt with black and white vertical stripes. The National Hockey League (NH ...
* Hockey Canada Officiating Program


References


External links


Hockey Referee HQ

HockeyOfficials.com

HockeyRefs.com

National Association of Sports Officials

NHL Officials Association



USA Hockey Officiating Program

National Ice Hockey Officials Association

Ice Hockey Australia Officiating Program

Norwegian Ice Hockey Officials Club

Swiss Hockey Officials

Belgian Referee Commission

Danish Ice Hockey Officials Club

French Referee Commission

German Hockey Officiating



Wasatch Ice Hockey Officials Association

Atlantic Amateur Hockey Association Officiating Program

Eastern Collegiate Officials Association

Mid-Atlantic Hockey Officials Association

Metro New York / New Jersey Chapter of the National Ice Hockey Officials Association

Northeast Ice Hockey Officials Association
{{IceHockeyPositions Sports officiating